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Time is running out for Democrats on cryptocurrencies
Last week, cryptocurrencies made headlines again. Donald Trump declared himself a unabashed supporter as he unveils a new line of mug shot NFTs at Mar-a-Lago. On the same day, the Biden administration announced it would veto efforts to remedy a widely loathed situation SEC accounting bulletin which prevents the custody of cryptocurrencies by many companies.
The stories highlight how cryptocurrencies have become yet another battleground in this year’s presidential election. But for many Democrats, the Biden administration’s hard line has seemed as tragicomic as watching Sideshow Bob step on dozens of rakes, over and over again.
At the rate things are going, cryptocurrency owners could be the straw that breaks Biden’s campaign’s back. According to the paradigm survey Since March, while Biden has lost 44%-43% among cryptocurrency owners, he has lost 48-39% among the 20% of voters who own cryptocurrencies. And that’s a change from 2020, when cryptocurrency owners recall voting for Biden by 43%-39%.
As Democrats, we would like to see Biden give people in the cryptocurrency world a reason to believe in him. According to surveys conducted by both our organizations, approximately 20% of registered voters own cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency owners are young, but they are all sorts of partisans. About 20% of Democrats own cryptocurrencies, about 20% of Republicans own cryptocurrencies, and about 20% of Independents own cryptocurrencies. People vote (or don’t vote) for many reasons, but being anti-crypto is interpreted as synonymous with anti-innovation, anti-technology and anti-change. The wounds to the campaign are self-inflicted.
Cryptocurrencies should not be a partisan issue. No technology should be. The idea of being pro- or anti-cryptocurrency should be as ridiculous as describing yourself as pro-computers or anti-toasters. Yet under this administration, we, lifelong progressives who have a healthy skepticism about technology, have watched with growing concern as our party has cast the entire digital assets industry as evil. Nowhere is this clearer than with the SEC under the chairmanship of Gary Gensler. The chairman of the SEC testified told Congress early in his term that cryptocurrency legislation was needed to give the SEC additional critical authority to regulate the industry. Over the next year, he scrapped that sensible approach in favor of a relentless fight with his fellow regulators attacking the industry in printing and engaging in a “sinners in the hands of an angry god” anti-space campaign.
With some notable exceptions, the agency has closed its doors to the entire industry and made it clear that it can do nothing to work with Chairman Gensler. The President has provided no path to compliance for the industry, sending a singular message to cryptocurrencies: I demand your destruction.
The story continues
This mentality has not bled the entire Administration dry. There are some agencies and regulators who have not positioned themselves with such hostility. But there was also little significant resistance at the top when it came to curbing Gensler’s antics. Indeed, the White House statement calling for a veto on efforts to change SAB 121 (the rules that severely limit who can store cryptocurrencies) was seen by many as a vote of support for the President’s entire approach to cryptocurrencies .
Fortunately, some Democrats in Congress have tried to create space from the SEC. Notably, 21 people voted to overturn SAB121, showing that it’s not just industry players who perceive political bias here.
We are both progressives in the cryptocurrency space and think the party is making a mistake if it lets a few loud voices dictate policy at the party level. Sheila entered blockchain after a decade in nonprofit law and civic technology, due to concerns about big data monopolies and inequality in the movement of money across borders. Justin entered the world of cryptocurrency after working in and out of government because he provides an open space to build technology without the control of a single entity. The idea of a decentralized platform owned by tens of millions of people is a respite from our current world of both technology and finance, full of closed spaces governed like feudal fiefdoms.
While the headlines focus on the worst actors, the reality is that the industry is not a monolith. Responsible companies have been calling for regulation for years, even though they know that regulation will create potentially complicated and costly compliance requirements. But Democratic leaders have largely ignored them. Why? When did Democrats start to be afraid of legislating and regulating? Why do Democrats choose to pursue aggressive approaches in a conservative justice system? We’re backwards.
It’s not too late to change course. Democrats don’t need to hang a giant “I 💙Crypto” sign on the DNC to appeal to cryptocurrency owners; simply saying that they think cryptocurrencies are an innovation that requires reasonable regulation would help immensely. But if Democrats don’t at least try to appeal to this voting bloc, they risk sending them back to Donald Trump. In an important election like this, with Biden below in polls, Democrats should be trying to bring crypto voters into the tent, not recklessly chase them away.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
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Cryptocurrency Price August 1: Bitcoin Dips Below $65K; Solana, XRP Down Up To 8%
Major cryptocurrencies fell in Thursday trading following the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep its key interest rate unchanged. Overnight, the U.S. Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate at 5.25-5.5% for the eighth consecutive time, as expected, while also signaling the possibility of a rate cut at its next meeting in September. The unanimous decision by the Federal Open Market Committee reflects a continued wait-and-see approach as it monitors inflation trends.
CoinSwitch Markets Desk said: “Bitcoin has fallen below $65,000 after the US Federal Reserve announced it would keep interest rates unchanged. However, with markets now anticipating rate cuts at the next Federal Reserve meeting in September, the outlook for a Bitcoin rally by the end of the year has strengthened.”
Meanwhile, CoinDCX research team said: “The crypto market has plunged after the Fed decision. Tomorrow’s US unemployment rate announcement is expected to induce more volatility, with the ‘actual’ figure coming in higher than the ‘expected’ one, which is positive for cryptocurrencies.”
At 12:21 pm IST, Bitcoin (BTC) was down 3.2% at $64,285, while Ethereum was down nearly 4.5% at $3,313. Meanwhile, the global market cryptocurrency The market capitalization fell 3.6% to around $2.3 trillion in the last 24 hours.
“Bitcoin needs to clear its 200-day EMA at $64,510 to consolidate further. Otherwise, a retest of $62,000 could be in the cards,” said Vikram Subburaj, CEO of Giottus.
Altcoins and meme coins, such as BNB (3%), Solana (8%), XRP (5.7%), Dogecoin (5%), Cardano (4.6%), Avalanche (4.3%), Shiba Inu (3.8%), Polkadot (3.4%), and Chainlink (4%) also saw declines.
The volume of all stablecoins is now $71.64 billion, which is 92.19% of the total cryptocurrency market volume in 24 hours, according to data available on CoinMarketCap. Bitcoin’s dominance is currently 54.99%. BTC volume in the last 24 hours increased by 23.3% to $35.7 billion.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, opinions and views provided by experts are personal. They do not represent the views of the Economic Times)
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Altcoins WIF, BONK, RUNE, JUP Down 10% While Bitcoin Drops 4%
Altcoins dogwifhat, Bonk, THORChain, and Jupiter have suffered losses of more than 10%, while Bitcoin is down 4% in the last 24 hours.
After a period of relative calm yesterday, July 31, Bitcoin (BTC) price action has seen a drastic change as the cryptocurrency dropped by more than $3,500, bringing its value to $63,300. At the same time, altcoins mirrored this trend, with the total value of liquidated positions rising to nearly $225 million over the course of the day.
Initially, the week started on a positive note for Bitcoin, which reached its highest point since early June, hitting $70,000. However, this peak was short-lived, as it was quickly rejected, leading to a substantial decline, with Bitcoin falling below $65,500.
The cryptocurrency managed to regain some stability, trading comfortably at around $66,800. However, following a Press conference According to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, the value of Bitcoin has fallen again to $64,300, down more than 3% in 24 hours.
BTC Price Chart 24 Hours | Source: crypto.news
The recession coincided with a relationship from the New York Times stating that Iran had called for retaliatory measures against Israel following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, increasing the risk of further conflict in the region.
Meanwhile, on the economic front, the Federal Reserve decided to keep its benchmark interest rates in place, offering little information on a planned September rate cut. Powell also hinted that while no concrete decisions have been made on the September adjustment, there is growing consensus that a rate cut is likely.
Amid Bitcoin’s decline, altcoins have suffered even more significant losses. For example, dogwifhat (Wife) saw a 12.4% drop and (DISGUST) has suffered a 10% drop. Other altcoins such as THORChain (RUNE) also fell by 10%, while Jupiter (JUPITER) and the Ethereum naming service (ENS) decreased by 8% and 9% respectively.
Among the largest-cap cryptocurrencies, the biggest losers are Solana (SOL) with a decrease of 8%, (Exchange rate risk) down 6%, Cardano (ADA) down 4%, and both Ethereum (ETH) and Dogecoin (DOGE) recording a decrease of 4.4%.
Data from CoinGlass indicates that approximately 67,000 traders have been negatively impacted by this increased volatility. BTC positions have seen $61.85 million in liquidations, while ETH positions have faced $61 million. In total, the value of liquidated positions stands at $225.4 million at the time of writing.
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Riot Platforms Sees 52% Drop in Bitcoin Production in Q2
Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms has released its second-quarter financial results, highlighting a decline in cryptocurrency mined due to the recent halving.
Colorado-based Bitcoin (BTC) mining company Riot platforms revealed its second quarter financial results, highlighting a significant reduction in mined cryptocurrencies attributed to the recent halving event that took place in early April.
The company reported total revenue of $70 million for the quarter ended July 31, a decline of 8.7% compared to the same period in 2023. Riot Platforms attributed the revenue decline primarily to a $9.7 million decrease in engineering revenue, which was partially mitigated by a $6 million increase in Bitcoin extraction income.
During the quarter, the company mined 844 BTC, representing a decline of over 50% from Q2 2023, citing the halving event and increasing network difficulty as major factors behind the decline. Riot Platforms reported a net loss of $84.4 million, or $0.32 per share, missing Zacks Research forecast a loss of $0.16 per share.
Halving increases competitive pressure
The Colorado-based firm said the average cost of mining one BTC in the second quarter, including energy credits, rose to $25,327, a remarkable 341% increase from $5,734 per BTC in the same quarter of 2023. Despite this significant increase in production costs, the firm remains optimistic about maintaining competitiveness through recent deals.
For example, following the Recent acquisition Cryptocurrency firm Block Mining, Riot has increased its distributed hash rate forecast from 31 EH/s to 36 EH/s by the end of 2024, while also increasing its 2025 forecast from 40 EH/s to 56 EH/s.
Riot Platforms Hashrate Growth Projections by 2027 | Source: Riot Platforms
Commenting on the company’s financials, Riot CEO Jason Les said that despite the halving, the mining company still managed to achieve “significant operational growth and execution of our long-term strategy.”
“Despite this reduction in production available to all Bitcoin miners, Riot reported $70 million in revenue for the quarter and maintained strong gross margins in our core Bitcoin mining business.”
Jason Les
Following its Q2 financial report, Riot Platforms shares fell 1.74% to $10.19, according to Google Finance data. Meanwhile, the American miner continues to chase Canadian rival Bitfarms, recently acquiring an additional 10.2 million BITF shares, increasing its stake in Bitfarms to 15.9%.
As previously reported by crypto.news, Riot was the first announced a $950 million takeover bid for Bitfarms in late May, arguing that Bitfarms’ founders were not acting in the best interests of all shareholders. They said their proposal was rejected by Bitfarms’ board without substantive engagement.
In response, Bitfarms She said that Riot’s offer “significantly understates” its growth prospects. Bitfarms subsequently implemented a shareholder rights plan, also known as a “poison pill,” to protect its strategic review process from hostile takeover attempts.
News
Aave Price Increases Following Whales Accumulation and V3.1 Launch
Decentralized finance protocol Aave is seeing a significant spike in whale activity as the market looks to recover from the recent crash that pushed most altcoins into key support areas earlier this week.
July 31, Lookonchain shared details indicating that the whales had aggressively accumulated Aave (AAVE) over the past two days. According to the data, whales have withdrawn over 58,848 AAVE worth $6.47 million from exchanges during this period.
In one instance, whale address 0x9af4 withdrew 11,185 AAVE worth $1.23 million from Binance. Meanwhile, another address moved 21,619 AAVE worth over $2.38 million from the exchange and deposited the tokens into Aave.
These withdrawals follow a previous transfer of 26,044 AAVE from whale address 0xd7c5, amounting to over $2.83 million withdrawn from Binance.
AAVE price has surged over 7% in the past 24 hours amid buy-side pressure from these whales. The DeFi token is currently trading around $111 after jumping over 18% in the past week.
Recently, the price of AAVE increased by over 8% after Aave founder Marc Zeller announced a proposed fee change aimed at adopting a buyback program for AAVE tokens.
Aave v3.1 is available
The total value locked in the Aave protocol currently stands at around $22 billion. According to DeFiLlamaApproximately $19.9 billion is on Aave V3, while the V2 chain still holds approximately $1.9 billion in TVL and V1 approximately $14.6 million.
Aave Labs announced Previously, Aave V3.1 was made available on all networks with active Aave V3 instances.
V3.1 features improvements that are intended to improve the overall security of the DeFi protocol. The Aave DAO governance has approved the v3.1 improvements, which also include operational efficiency and usability for the network.
Meanwhile, Aave Labs recently outlined a ambitious roadmap for the projectwith a 2030 vision for Aave V4, among other developments.
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